FARMINGTON – An energized University of Maine at Farmington women’s basketball team came out of the locker room at halftime and poured in 24 third-quarter points, matching the most for the Beavers in a quarter this season, on its way to a 70-55 win over Rivier College, in Friday evening’s second game of the UMaine-Farmington Beaver Classic at Dearborn Gym.
The Beavers improved to 3-1 with the victory, while Rivier took its first loss to slip to 2-1.
Leading 31-27 at the intermission, the Raiders got an early layup from Lyric Grumblatt to open the third quarter and close the gap to 31-29.
From there, UMaine-Farmington outscored Rivier 11-3 over the next five minutes, fueled by 3-pointers from Tia Day and Makayla Wilson along with a pair of Page Brown layups. The run ended with the Beavers holding a 42-32 advantage with 5:41 remaining. That lead held mostly steady for the rest of the frame, and UMaine-Farmington led 55-44 after three quarters of play.
The Raiders clawed their way back to within seven of the Beavers, 61-54, with 4:35 left in the fourth quarter, but a late run from UMaine-Farmington sealed the win. UMF outscored Rivier, 9-1, down the stretch, including four points each from Brown and McKenna Brodeur.
Alex Bessey led UMaine-Farmington with 21 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the floor, with Brown contributing 16 points with a team-high nine rebounds. Brodeur finished the night with 10 points and a game-high five assists. The Beavers shot .446 (26-of-57) from the floor while holding the Raiders to a .316 (18-of-57) shooting clip. Rivier outhustled UMaine-Farmington on the boards, 40-36.
Grumblatt amassed 28 points on 10-of-25 shooting from the field, while Alexa Dufries finished with 11 points off the bench.
In the tournament’s first game, UMaine-Presque Isle defeated Lasell University, 81-70. Emily Wheaton led a quartet of Owls in double figures with 22 points, while Alexis Ireland charted a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
In Saturday’s matchups, UMaine-Presque Isle will face Rivier at 1:00 p.m., followed by UMaine-Farmington versus Lasell at 3:00 p.m.
All spectators to UMaine-Farmington home basketball games are required to wear masks, and provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination or negative COVID-19 test (PCR or antigen tests accepted; “at home” tests not accepted) taken within 72 hours prior to the game. Complete information available at www.goUMFbeavers.com/COVID
